Archived press release

Date Published: 25/09/06

A new season of Buckinghamshire‘s successful rural touring arts project hits the road next month to bring the magic of the theatre to Aylesbury Vale communities. Now in its eighth season, the Theatre in the Villages programme includes eight...

A new season of Buckinghamshire‘s successful rural touring arts project hits the road next month to bring the magic of the theatre to Aylesbury Vale communities.

Now in its eighth season, the Theatre in the Villages programme includes eight comedy, theatre, magic, puppetry and dance shows which will provide 13 performances at venues across the district between October and December.

The season gets underway in Aylesbury Vale on 7 October with Lifting the Mask, presented by the London Shakespeare Workout at The Bernard Hall in Cuddington. Lifting the Mask sets the exotic tales of Paul Laurence Dunbar (the first African-American to gain international eminence as a poet) to an original score by Tim Williams.

Josh Elwell and Company bring Bird in the Hand to North Marston Village Hall on 12 October, a show which is set in the miraculous world of Victorian circus and recalls the true stories of some of its stars.

Touring theatre company 3hird Wheel take Sans Everything to Wingrave Community Centre on 18 October, a unique and hilarious tale which takes the moment of forgetting your car keys and turns it into a swashbuckling adventure for all the family.

Talented performers Michael Lunts and Susan Flannery will be bringing their popular show to Bishopstone Village Hall on 14 November and Akeley Village Hall on 15 November. Featuring songs by Gershwin, Cole Porter, Rogers and Hart and other great American songsmiths, Wits End is a cocktail of witty song and comic verse inspired by New York in its pre-war heyday.

Buckinghamshire-born musician Ian Keable will be conjuring up comedy at three Aylesbury Vale
villages this autumn; Westbury Pavilion on 21 November, Waddesdon Village Hall on 23 November and Beachampton Village Hall on 24 November. Experience the excitement and exhilaration of live magic combined with a cocktail of jokes and witty repartee from a member of the innermost level of The Magic Circle.

The Third Space Theatre Company is at East & Botolph Claydon on 28 November and Hardwick on 12 December to perform In the Bleak Midwinter, a family show with a new twist on the story of Christmas.

Niki McCretton brings Muttnik, the story of the lucky stray chosen to be the first Russian dog in space, to The Bernard Hall in Cuddington on 8 December and Steeple Claydon Village Hall on 14 December. Muttnik will be brought to life in an enchanting physical theatre, puppetry and dance show.

A unique experience is in store for the residents of Mursley on 9 December, as the Monks of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery offer a dramatic presentation of their sacred dances, music and prayers, with colourful costumes and ceremonial masks.

Theatre in the Villages is jointly funded by Aylesbury Vale, Chiltern, South Bucks, Wycombe, Mid Beds and South Beds district councils.

The touring theatre scheme, which was initiated by AVDC’s arts development team, has been held up as an example of best practice by the Arts Council in rural arts provision. It will be visiting venues in Bedfordshire for the first time this year. 

Councillor David Thompson, Cabinet Member for Leisure at AVDC, said: “This scheme is very successful and allows local people to come together and share an event that is affordable and accessible. It also allows us to provide first class theatre entertainment throughout the district and has helped many local communities go on to promote their own theatre productions. We are committed to working with our partners to continue to help the cultural sector thrive and to make the arts accessible to everyone in the district.”

For further information on any of the performances in Aylesbury Vale, visit the council’s website www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk under Your Leisure, then Events. For full details on the Theatre in the Villages scheme or to purchase tickets, please call Cecilia Kean on 01494 670341 or email:
Cecilia@ryefieldarts.fsnet.co.uk